Sega Rovio deal fallout 🎮 RPG Maker archive race 📦 UK games ratings exemption 🏛️

Top Stories

What went wrong with Sega's $776m acquisition of Angry Birds giant Rovio? (8 min read)

Sega recorded a $200 million impairment on its 2023 acquisition of Rovio for $776 million in February, citing profitability falling below forecast. CEO Haruki Satomi said Sega failed to integrate Rovio's Beacon technology with its own mobile titles due to differing operational and marketing methods. Sega now plans to focus Rovio on "rebuilding" before pursuing game-as-a-service titles. Industry analysts attribute the underperformance to Angry Birds' maturity as a brand and Sega's weak existing mobile portfolio. (GamesIndustry.biz)

RPG Maker forum users are racing to archive almost 15 years of valuable resources, as game engine maker announces impending move (4 min read)

RPG Maker's official forum will close December 11, 2026, as part of a shift to a new platform operated by Gotcha Gotcha Games. The studio announced no official archive or backup plan, leaving users to manually preserve nearly 15 years of development resources—1.4 million messages across hundreds of thousands of threads covering tutorials, guides, and technical support. The Legacy Engine support forum alone contains 280,000 messages. Community members are racing to save critical information before the six-month deadline. (Eurogamer)

UKIE welcomes video games being classed separately from social media as UK government announces ban (2 min read)

The UK government announced a ban on social media for under-16s, set to take effect by spring 2027, while explicitly classifying video games as distinct from social media. The ban targets platforms including Snapchat, TikTok, YouTube, and Instagram. The government will also implement default-off restrictions on livestreaming and stranger communication across online services including "gaming sites"—though UKIE clarified this does not refer to video games themselves. These restrictions apply to users under 17. UKIE CEO Nick Poole welcomed the games classification, citing the PEGI rating system and platform safety features as evidence the industry already protects children. (GamesIndustry.biz)

Business & Finance

Report: Microsoft weighing up spinning off Xbox (2 min read)

Microsoft is reportedly considering spinning off Xbox as a separate entity or restructuring it as a wholly owned subsidiary. CEO Satya Nadella and CFO Amy Hood approved Xbox CEO Asha Sharma's plan to increase spending on Halo, Fallout, and The Elder Scrolls to accelerate development. (GamesIndustry.biz)

EA rolls out Advertising platform to let companies market "directly into gameplay" (2 min read)

EA launched EA Advertising, a platform enabling brands to place dynamic, real-time ads directly into gameplay via stadium signage and in-game content across its sports titles and other games. The platform includes targeting and measurement tools built for the Frostbite engine, with early clients including Visa, Red Bull, and Peacock. (GamesIndustry.biz)

"We're going to see more hit games coming from publishers you've never heard of" – Pocketpair and the indie publishing revolution (8 min read)

Pocketpair Publishing head John Buckley argues traditional publisher deal structures are outdated, citing 100% recoup clauses as relics of gaming a decade ago. Pocketpair and other indie mega-hit studios are launching publishing arms offering more favorable terms to developers. (GamesIndustry.biz)

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